This chapter examines Thucydides' presentation of the pre-history and causes of the Peloponnesian War in his Book 1. It explores the interplay of various key-words in Thucydides' explanatory scheme ...
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This chapter examines Thucydides' presentation of the pre-history and causes of the Peloponnesian War in his Book 1. It explores the interplay of various key-words in Thucydides' explanatory scheme (especially arche, diaphora, prophasis and aitia), and the ways in which the narrative of the Pentekontaetia (1.89-118) is moulded to support the analysis. Thucydides' methods owe something, and in some cases allude, to Homer, Hesiod, Herodotus, and the Hippocratics. Punning and word-play, e.g. on arche as beginning and arche as empire or on Pausanias as ‘stopper’, are seen as important; so is the tracing of events back to Pausanias and Themistocles. The chapter finally discusses how far this may be seen as an ‘open’ text: not very, it argues.Less

Narrative and Speech Problems in Thucydides Book I

John Moles

Published in print: 2010-04-27

This chapter examines Thucydides' presentation of the pre-history and causes of the Peloponnesian War in his Book 1. It explores the interplay of various key-words in Thucydides' explanatory scheme (especially arche, diaphora, prophasis and aitia), and the ways in which the narrative of the Pentekontaetia (1.89-118) is moulded to support the analysis. Thucydides' methods owe something, and in some cases allude, to Homer, Hesiod, Herodotus, and the Hippocratics. Punning and word-play, e.g. on arche as beginning and arche as empire or on Pausanias as ‘stopper’, are seen as important; so is the tracing of events back to Pausanias and Themistocles. The chapter finally discusses how far this may be seen as an ‘open’ text: not very, it argues.

For more than a century Thucydides' eulogy on Themistocles has been interpreted as a classic revision of Herodotus, who allegedly defamed the victor of Salamis. This chapter shows that Thucydides, ...
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For more than a century Thucydides' eulogy on Themistocles has been interpreted as a classic revision of Herodotus, who allegedly defamed the victor of Salamis. This chapter shows that Thucydides, since he was covering other periods of Themistocles' life than Herodotus, simply did not have the opportunity decisively to refute his predecessor's portrait. For an understanding of Thucydides' treatment of Themistocles, it is necessary to discover his sources and to assess how much he has taken from them. Only then can a comparison be made between Thucydides' description of Themistocles and the description Herodotus formed, often enough by twisting his sources' biases around.Less

Thucydides on Themistocles: A Herodotean Narrator? ⋆

Wolfgang Blösel

Published in print: 2012-05-10

For more than a century Thucydides' eulogy on Themistocles has been interpreted as a classic revision of Herodotus, who allegedly defamed the victor of Salamis. This chapter shows that Thucydides, since he was covering other periods of Themistocles' life than Herodotus, simply did not have the opportunity decisively to refute his predecessor's portrait. For an understanding of Thucydides' treatment of Themistocles, it is necessary to discover his sources and to assess how much he has taken from them. Only then can a comparison be made between Thucydides' description of Themistocles and the description Herodotus formed, often enough by twisting his sources' biases around.

This chapter examines the French academic painter Fernand Cormon's Les Vainqueurs de Salamine (1887). It shows how the Persian Wars chimed at this time with a mood of nationalist revanche and ...
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This chapter examines the French academic painter Fernand Cormon's Les Vainqueurs de Salamine (1887). It shows how the Persian Wars chimed at this time with a mood of nationalist revanche and military reform. The War Minister General Boulanger enjoyed huge popularity, confronting Germany and passing measures to render the French army a citizen militia on ancient lines; Themistocles himself in the painting resembles Boulanger on his famous curvetting horse. It is little surprise that Cormon's contemporaries read the work as showing the Greeks as ‘people like us’, in their vulnerable bodily reality, their fervent patriotism, and in their supportive womenfolk. The Persian Wars theme here expresses through history painting the aspirations of ordinary members of a community at a critical turning point of world history.Less

‘People Like Us’ in the Face of History: Cormon’s Les Vainqueurs de Salamine

Clemence Schultze

Published in print: 2007-02-15

This chapter examines the French academic painter Fernand Cormon's Les Vainqueurs de Salamine (1887). It shows how the Persian Wars chimed at this time with a mood of nationalist revanche and military reform. The War Minister General Boulanger enjoyed huge popularity, confronting Germany and passing measures to render the French army a citizen militia on ancient lines; Themistocles himself in the painting resembles Boulanger on his famous curvetting horse. It is little surprise that Cormon's contemporaries read the work as showing the Greeks as ‘people like us’, in their vulnerable bodily reality, their fervent patriotism, and in their supportive womenfolk. The Persian Wars theme here expresses through history painting the aspirations of ordinary members of a community at a critical turning point of world history.

This chapter focuses on the question of how Herodotus explains success. What inborn qualities guarantee success? What makes one Persian King more successful than another? The chapter considers ...
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This chapter focuses on the question of how Herodotus explains success. What inborn qualities guarantee success? What makes one Persian King more successful than another? The chapter considers Herodotus’ use of the adjectives agathos and chrestos/chresimos in his characterization of important players in the Greco-Persian wars, such as Themistocles and Xerxes, or the Athenians and Spartans collectively. Both adjectives are normally translated as ‘good’, but it appears that their semantics were divergent. Herodotus places them in opposition to show that success does not exclusively depend on courage in battle (= agathos), but also on less glorious aspects such as shrewdness in diplomacy, a good sense of timing, and a willingness to be serviceable rather than strive after honour (= chrestos/chresimos). In the Histories, few display an ideal mix of these qualities, and they often coincide only temporarily before succumbing to the principle of everlasting change.Less

Herodotus on Being ‘Good’ : Characterization and Explanation

Mathieu De Bakker

Published in print: 2015-06-01

This chapter focuses on the question of how Herodotus explains success. What inborn qualities guarantee success? What makes one Persian King more successful than another? The chapter considers Herodotus’ use of the adjectives agathos and chrestos/chresimos in his characterization of important players in the Greco-Persian wars, such as Themistocles and Xerxes, or the Athenians and Spartans collectively. Both adjectives are normally translated as ‘good’, but it appears that their semantics were divergent. Herodotus places them in opposition to show that success does not exclusively depend on courage in battle (= agathos), but also on less glorious aspects such as shrewdness in diplomacy, a good sense of timing, and a willingness to be serviceable rather than strive after honour (= chrestos/chresimos). In the Histories, few display an ideal mix of these qualities, and they often coincide only temporarily before succumbing to the principle of everlasting change.

This chapter makes two contributions to our understanding of Polybius’ representation of the Athenian democracy. First, it shows that Polybius’ negative general portrayal of Athens in his political ...
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This chapter makes two contributions to our understanding of Polybius’ representation of the Athenian democracy. First, it shows that Polybius’ negative general portrayal of Athens in his political analysis in Book 6 is frequently at odds with his apparent admiration of the Athenians as reflected in his accounts of Athenian diplomacy in the historical narrative. Second, and more importantly, the paper contextualizes the characterization of the Athenian politeia in Book 6 within Polybius’ generally negative depictions of radical democratic states (ochlocracy, in Polybius’ terms). Here it is necessary to note the political meaning of the term ‘democracy’ in the mid-second century BCE, in order to understand how Polybius can condemn the Athenian politeia while praising the qualities of δημοκρατία‎.Less

Polybius on ‘Classical Athenian Imperial Democracy’

Craige B. Champion

Published in print: 2018-01-25

This chapter makes two contributions to our understanding of Polybius’ representation of the Athenian democracy. First, it shows that Polybius’ negative general portrayal of Athens in his political analysis in Book 6 is frequently at odds with his apparent admiration of the Athenians as reflected in his accounts of Athenian diplomacy in the historical narrative. Second, and more importantly, the paper contextualizes the characterization of the Athenian politeia in Book 6 within Polybius’ generally negative depictions of radical democratic states (ochlocracy, in Polybius’ terms). Here it is necessary to note the political meaning of the term ‘democracy’ in the mid-second century BCE, in order to understand how Polybius can condemn the Athenian politeia while praising the qualities of δημοκρατία‎.